The 2025 BES Fellowship for Founding School Leaders - Rhode Island

BES Fellowship and School Leadership Opportunities • RI

314d • $100,000

About The Position

BES seeks a Rhode Island Fellow for our Fellowship program starting in August 2025 to serve as a Founding School Leader. This Fellowship offers highly motivated leaders committed to transforming education the rigorous, multi-year training needed to design, found, and lead a high-achieving school that meets the unique needs of its community. BES welcomes applicants from any Rhode Island region favorable for new public charter schools and aligned with authorizer priorities, with particular interest in leaders aiming to found schools in Providence, Pawtucket, Central Falls, and Woonsocket. Note: BES is currently exploring the potential for a Fellowship opportunity in Rhode Island. While we are accepting applications from strong candidates interested in founding a school in this region, we cannot guarantee that we will be admitting a Fellow from Rhode Island at this time. As a result, the application timeline for candidates from this region may be longer than usual.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree required; Master’s or Professional degree preferred.
• Minimum 8 years of professional experience, with instructional or instructional leadership experience required.
• At least 2 years managing and supervising adults in a PreK-12 setting required, 2 years of school leadership experience preferred.
• Commitment to serving as a school leader in the proposed community for at least 10 years required.
• Ability to establish and activate local connections to support school enrollment.

Nice To Haves

• Strong preference for candidates with 2-3 years of experience living or working in the proposed school region, especially those with strong ties to the community.
• Clear, compelling rationale for the proposed school location.

Responsibilities

• Engage in over 300 hours of coursework on school design, leadership, governance, and community engagement during the intensive training year.
• Conduct in-depth studies of effective schools across the nation and complete residencies at high-performing schools.
• Develop a charter application and establish a founding board during the training year.
• Partner with a BES coach to refine project management and leadership skills in the planning year.
• Hire founding staff, recruit students, and solidify the school vision during the planning year.
• Welcome the inaugural class and coach teachers during the first two operational years.
• Use data to drive academic success and deepen the academic focus in the second year of operation.

Benefits

• This is a contract role with a $100,000+ grant during the first year of the program (the Fellowship training year).
• Health reimbursements available.
• Travel and accommodations for training and during school study travel.
• Technology support.
• Reimbursement for up to $5,000 in moving expenses.
• Up to $3,500 reimbursed for school design expenses for Build Fellows.
• The opportunity to apply for BES start-up fund awards and/or those provided exclusively to Fellows by our partners.

What This Job Offers

• Career Level: Entry Level
• Education Level: Bachelor's degree